In the small village of Gham Qol, everyone is frightened and distressed. A few days ago, as the wind and rain intensified, villagers anxiously looked toward the highlands, fearing that heavy rainfall might trigger a disaster. Then, sudden and powerful floods surged down into several valleys. In the blink of an eye, the floodwaters reached the village — first overwhelming the streams in the area, then rushing into the wheat fields. According to Rahman, a local resident, these floods proved to be extremely dangerous.
The wheat plains, which had only recently turned green, were buried under the force of the water. The wheat crop was destroyed, and along with it, the hopes that the women and men of this village had planted with their own hands over the months. They had been waiting for the harvest only to watch the destructive floods wiped out the result of years of labor and hardship.
Now, the face of this village has changed. Agricultural lands are no longer cultivable. Their harvest, along with some livestock, were the only sources of income for families.The damage inflicted by the flood is visible everywhere: in the ruined springs and karez systems, in paths that are no longer passable, and ultimately in the sad faces of the residents.
The village of Gham Qol is in Khedir District in Daikundi province. It’s one of many villages in the area to suffer extensive damage from the recent floods. “The damage from this year’s floods is immense; 8 acres of land — planted with wheat, vegetables, and other crops — have been destroyed,” explains Rahman.
According to a report sent to the provincial department of agriculture, the damage in Khedir district includes at least 76 hectares of irrigated and rain-fed land, 3.3 kilometers of irrigation canals, 66 karez lines, 85 water reservoirs, 16 wells, and a large number of fruit-bearing and non-fruit trees.
According to environmental experts, floods depend on factors including regional topography, the steepness of the slope, vegetation cover, and the local impact of climate change. As one of the most mountainous provinces in the country with steep gradients, Daikundi province is more exposed than others to the impact of severe flooding. Slope plays a critical role in regulating surface water flow as the gradient of a channel is directly linked to the speed of water. Because water infiltration into the soil is also influenced by the angle of the slope, an increase in this angle leads to faster surface runoff and reduced absorption. As a result, large volumes of water can accumulate rapidly and produce intense floods.
In addition, vegetation cover plays a crucial role in several hydrological processes, including evaporation and transpiration, soil water absorption, and flood control. The loss of vegetation is another major factor contributing to floods, often resulting from poor management, deforestation, the removal of shrubs, and overgrazing. For instance, in the village of Gham Qol, nomadic Kochis enter the area each year with their livestock, which severely damage the vegetation cover through excessive grazing. “Wherever they [the Kochis] let their animals graze, nothing is left; they consume the shrubs, grass, and all other greenery,” explains Rahman. In his view, the influx of Kochis into Gham Qol and the resultant overgrazing of its vegetation have played a significant role in the recent floods.
The impact of floods is not limited to Daikundi but is affecting most provinces across Afghanistan, with varying levels of intensity and destruction. In a video circulating on social media, a powerful flood destroys a two-story house in Nangarhar province, sweeping away a large portion of it. Other videos from Nangarhar and Herat provinces show floodwaters entering residential homes, while people struggle to rescue families trapped inside.
Floods aren’t the only natural disasters to strike Afghanistan recently. Heavy snowfall has also caused significant damage to agriculture and livestock in different parts of the country, including in Panjshir province, which has been hit by cold weather combined with a lot of snow.
Brayali, a resident of Panjshir province, tells Zan Times, “In some areas, up to 20 centimetres of snow has fallen. In certain districts, roads have even been blocked, and the weather here has become extremely cold.” He describes the change in the timing of snowfall as a new phenomenon: “At this time of year, we usually don’t use heaters or traditional warming setups, but people have been forced to use them again.”
This shift in the timing of snowfall, which is caused by climate change, is one of the serious challenges facing communities whose livelihoods depend on agriculture and livestock. According to Brayali, the cost of these snowfalls is very high: “We had planted potatoes recently, but now that snow has fallen and the weather has turned cold, those potatoes may all rot,” explains Brayali. “People had also planted wheat, and it had been completely destroyed.”
In addition, avalanches triggered by the recent snowfalls have also caused considerable damage to the agricultural lands in the area.
Other colder regions of the country are facing similar conditions. Khadem, a resident of Shahristan district of Daikundi province, tells Zan Times that his district’s apricot, almond, and apple trees were affected by the late snowfall. “The damage has been severe, especially to the trees. In our area, apricots have been heavily affected, and then almonds, because these trees were in their flowering stage,” he says, adding that the snowfall was unprecedented as it reached up to 25 centimetres in some areas.
These latest natural disasters are part of a recent trend. Such calamities have increased significantly in recent years, as has their impact. The Taliban’s disaster management authority recently announced that, since late March, the number of deaths attributed to natural disasters has reached 189, with 250 people injured. The agency’s spokesperson also stated that during this period, 7,047 homes, 9217 acres of agricultural land, and hundreds of kilometers of roads and water supply networks have been destroyed. The Taliban has put the total number of affected families at 9,000.
In addition, the United Nations Human Settlements Programme reported that nearly 14,000 people in Afghanistan have been affected by flash floods since January 2026. The organization emphasized the urgent need for disaster-resilient infrastructure as such natural disasters, especially floods, have become among the deadliest hazards in Afghanistan.
Although the Taliban appears relatively forthcoming in recording and announcing figures on casualties and damages caused by natural disasters, it is rare for its spokespeople to address the basic needs of victims. Given consistent reports of how the Taliban politicizes humanitarian aid, it appears that the timely release of such statistics is aimed at attracting more foreign assistance rather than responding to affected communities or raising public awareness.
At the same time, what has become clear is that the Taliban have so far failed to establish a structured system capable of responding to natural disasters. The group’s leadership has appointed individuals to head these institutions, but some have only religious education backgrounds and lack the necessary expertise in water resource management and disaster response. This challenge becomes more acute when the leadership views natural disasters as divine fate sent by God and considers itself powerless to control them. For example, last year, when drought reached its peak and severely affected agriculture and livestock, Hibatullah Akhundzada, the Taliban’s leader, merely called on people to pray for rain.
At a time when Afghanistan is facing a pressing climate crisis and its people are heavily dependent on international aid, there is a pressing need for the Taliban to adhere to international norms in order to secure assistance. However, despite witnessing dozens of casualties each day due to recent natural disasters, the regime is not only failing to take meaningful steps toward improving those relations, but also does not recognize meritocracy or diversity within Afghanistan, thereby limiting the country’s ability to draw on its internal capacities to address mounting climate challenges.
